33 IS militants killed in Afghan fresh airstrikes

Some 33 Islamic State (IS) militants were killed after Afghan air force warplanes struck their positions in Koot district of eastern Nangarhar province in the past 24 hours, the country's Interior Ministry said Monday.

In addition, three Taliban militants were killed after Afghan National Defense and Security Forces (ANDSF) conducted a joint security operation in Gadi village, Nangarhar province over the same period, the ministry said in a statement.

The mountainous province with Jalalabad city as its capital, 120 km east of Kabul, has been the scene of heavy clashes between security forces and IS militants since the emergence of IS there in early 2015.

Furthermore, two Taliban militants' weapons facilitators were captured by security forces in Mehtarlam city, capital of neighboring Laghman province, the provincial government said in a statement earlier on Monday.

The arrestees had been involved in a series of attacks in Mehtarlam and surrounding areas, the statement said, adding a sticky Improvised Explosive Device (IED) was also found in their possession.

The Afghan security forces have beefed up security operations against militants recently, as spring and summer known as the fighting seasons are drawing near in the Central Asian country.